Ice edger and line cutter



April 7, 1970 Filed Nov. '7, 1967 E. R. THOMSEN 3,504,434

ICE EDGER AND LINE CUTTER I46 I39 u f I HI I I .1. I44

74 j INvENroR /20 qo Elmer R. Thomsen ATTORNEY 3,5MA34 Patented Apr. 7,1970 3,504,434 ICE EDGER AND LINE CU'ITER Elmer R. Thomsen, 11022 SE.Stephen St., Portland, Oreg. 97214 Filed Nov. 7, 1967, Ser. No. 681,166Int. Cl. B26b 25/00; B27c Z/JO U.S. Cl. 30-170 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE A base adapted to be moved over the surface of a body of iceand including an upstanding driven rotary shaft projecting downwardlybelow the base and having a rotary cutting assembly mounted on the lowerend port on thereof, the base including a plurality of first dependingsupport members spaced about the shaft and supported from the base forvertical adjustment in stationary position relative to the base and anadditional support member spaced outwardly from the cutting assembly andfrom the first support members and supported from the base for freevertical shifting relative thereto with means provided for biasing theadditional support member downwardly relative to the base, the thrusteffected by the biasing means on the additional support member beinggenerally equal to the portion of the weight of the base which would besupported from the additional support member if it were stationarilymounted and the lower ends of all of the support members were disposedin a single plane.

The ice edger of the instant invention is designed to edge or cut theice to a proper surface around the perimeter of an ice sheet such as theice surface of a skating ring or ice hockey rink. In all ice rinks icebuilds up next to the boards and this build-up of ice is difiicult toremove and prevents the conventional ice surfacing machine, sometimesreferred to as an ice making machine, utilized to resurface the entiresheet of ice from performing a clean operation adjacent the perimeter ofthe rink. The ice edger is constructed so as to be particularly welladapted to remove the build-up of ice in an area within ten inches fromthe face of the boards at the perimeter of the ice surface and to alsolevel high spots present anywhere on the ice surface.

The ice edger includes four depending support members, three of whichbeing stationarily but vertically adjustably supported from the base ofthe ice edger and the fourth of which being supported from the base ofthe edger for free vertical adjustment and biased downwardly with athrust generally equal to the portion of the weight of the edger whichwould be supported from the fourth support member if it werestationarily mounted and the lower ends of all of the support memberswere disposed in a single plane. The three stationarily supportedsupport members are adapted to engage the ice which has not beenresurfaced by the ice edger or surfacer and the fourth freely verticallyshiftable support member is adapted to engage the ice which has beenresurfaced by the edger during movement of the latter along the boardsof an ice rink.

The main object of this invention is to provide an ice edger which willbe capable of removing the build-up of ice immediately adjacent theboards at the perimeter of an ice rink.

Another object of this invention, in accordance with the immediatelypreceding object, is to provide an ice edger which may be readily pushedby a person moving along the boards of an ice rink and equipped witheither ice skates or shoes on his feet.

A still further object of this invention is to provide an ice edger thatmay be readily adjusted, during use, to control the depth of the cut tobe made by the edger.

Still another object of this invention is to provide an ice edgerutilizing a small internal combustion engine or electric motor as themotive force for the cutting assembly of the edger whereby the edgerwill be operative independent of a remote power source.

A final object of this invention is to provide an ice edger which willconform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of simple constructionand easy to use so as to provide a device that will be economicallyfeasible, long lasting and relatively trouble free in operation.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of the ice edger;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sec tional view takensubstantially upon the plane indicated by the section line 22 of FIGURE1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sec tional view takensubstantially upon the plane indicated by the section line 3-3 of FIGURE1;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary bottom plane view of the ice edger;

FIGURE 5 is a bottom plan view of a modified form of rotary cutter to beutilized in conjunction with the edger for the purpose of cuttingshallow channels in a surface which may be subsequently filled withcolored water and frozen to form colored lines on an ice rink or thelike; and

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken substantiallyupon the plane indicated by the section line 66 of FIGURE 5.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10generally designates the ice edger of the instant invention. The edger10 includes a generally panellike base referred to in general by thereference numeral 12 which may be constructed of any suitable materialsuch as lightweight cast metal so as to include longitudinal andtransverse reinforcing ribs 14 and 16. The base further includesdepending opposite end skirts 18 and 20 as well as depending oppositeside skirts 22 and 24.

A11 elongated handle assembly generally referred to by the referencenumeral 26 is provided and includes a pair of longitudinal members 28and 30 which are generally parallel and interconnected at one pair ofcorresponding ends by means of a transversely extending hand grip 32.The ends of the longitudinal members 28 and 30 remote from the hand grip32 include angulated end portions 34 and 36 which are removably securedto the upper surface of the rear portion of the base 12 by means ofsuitable fasteners 38. The angulated end portions 34 and 36 are bracedrelative to the adjacent portions of the longitudinal members 28 and 30by means of suitable gusset plates 40 and 42.

The center of the base 12 is provided with a large diameter opening 44over which the flanged base of a conventional air cooled internalcombustion engine generally referred to by the reference numeral 46 isremovably secured by means of suitable fasteners 48. The internalcombustion engine 46 include a downwardly projecting drive shaft 50which projects downwardly through the opening 44 and has a rotarycutting assembly generally referred to by the reference numeral 52secured thereto.

The rotary cutting assembly 52 includes a generally circular mountingdisk 54 secured to an adapter 56 carried by the lower end of the shaft50, a plurality of threaded fasteners 58 being utilized to secure thedisk 54 to the adapter 56. The disk 54 includes a plurality ofdownwardly opening grooves 60 formed in its under surface in which aplurality of carbide tipped cutting members 62 are removably secured.

A forward transverse shaft 64 is journalled through the forward endportions of the skirts 22 and 24 and has a first support arm or foot 66secured thereto immediately inwardly of the skirt 24 and a secondsupport arm or foot 68 secured to the end portion of the shaft 64 whichprojects outwardly of the skirt 22. A single thrust collar 70 is securedto the shaft 64 immediately inwardly of the skirt 22 and coacts with thesupport arm or foot 68 to limit axial shifting of the shaft 64.

A third support arm or foot 74 is pivotally supported from the rear endof the skirt 22 by means of a suitable pivot fastener 76 and the supportarms or feet 60 and 76 include upwardly projecting arm portions '78 and80 which have front and rear internally threaded sleeves 82 and 84,respectively, pivotally secured thereto by means of pivot fasteners 86and 88.

The sleeves 82 and 84 are internally threaded and threadedly receivetherethrough the opposite end portions of a screw shaft 90. The shaft 90is journalled at its opposite ends from the sleeves 82 and 84 and thecenter portion thereof is rotatably received through an upstanding slot(not shown) formed in a journal boss 92 carried by the base 12. A pairof abutment collars 94 and 96 secured in position On the screw shaft 90on opposite sides of the journal boss 92 by means of set screws 97 andprevent axial shifting of the screw member or shaft 90 relative to thebase 12.

The rear end of the screw shaft 90 is coupled to an adjusting shaft 98by means of a universal joint assembly generally referred to by thereference numeral 100 and the adjustment shaft 98 is journalled from thehandle assembly 26 by means of a simple strap member 102 secured to thelongitudinal member 30 by means of a suitable fastener 104 and throughwhich the adjustment shaft 98 is rotatably received. The adjustmentshaft 98 generally parallels the longitudinal member 30 and has a crankhandle 106 secured to its upper end whereby the screw shaft 90 may berotated from the upper end of the handle assembly 26 during operation ofthe edger 10.

The support arms or feet 66, 68 and 74 each include curved surfaceportions 108, see FIGURE 3, which are adapted to rest upon the uppersurface of the ice which is to be cut by means of the edger 10 and thesurfaces 108 are curved so that the elevation of the base 12, and thusthe cutting assembly 52, relative to the surface 110 may be adjusted byswinging the support arms or feet 66, 68 and 74 about the axes ofrotation. The angular displacement of the support arms or feet 66, 68and 74 may, of course, be simultaneously adjusted by means of the screwshaft 90.

In addition to the three support arms or feet 66, 68 and 74, the base 12includes a thickened corner portion 112, see FIGURE 4, through which anelongated rodlike support arm or foot 114 is slidingly receiver, theupper end of the support arm or foot 114 including a diametricallyenlarged head 116 to limit downward movement of the support arm and thelower end of the support arm 114 being provided with an enlarged headportion 118 for engagement with the surface 110. A compression spring120 is disposed about the support arm 114 intermediate the lower headportion 118 and the under surface portion of the thickened cornerportion 112 and thereby biases the support arm 114 toward its lowermostposition illustrated in FIGURE 2 of the drawings. The stiffness of thespring 120 is such that the portion of the weight of the edger 10supported from the spring 114 is generally equal to the portion of theweight of the edger which would be supported from the enlarged headportion 118 if the support arm 114 was stationarily supported from thebase 12 and the lower end faces of all of the support arms 66, 68, 74and 114 were disposed in a single plane.

The edger 10 further includes a generally arcuate abutment plate 122including an upper horizontal flange portion 124 which is pivotallysupported from the base 12 by means of a pivot fastener 126, see FIGURES1 and 2. The flange portion 124 includes an arcuate slot (not shown)through which a fastener 128 extending through the base 12 is receivedand accordingly, the fastener 128 may be loosened so as to allow thearcuate abutment plate 122 to be angularly adjusted so as to projectdifferent distances outwardly from the outermost peripheral portion ofthe path of movement of the rotary cutting assembly 52. The arcuateabutment plate or member 122 is provided for engagement with the boardsof an ice rink or the like which extend about the periphery of the rinkand in thi manner the positioning of the cutting assembly 52 relative tothese boards when the arcuate abutment member 122 is in engagement withthe boards may be adjusted.

The rear portion of the base 12 is provided with a vertical bore 130through which a pivot pin or shaft 132, see FIGURE 3, may be rotatablyreceived, the pivot pin 132 being adapted to be driven into and frozenin the ice. In this manner, the ice edger 10 may be pivoted about thepivot pin 32 so as to cut a circular groove in the ice.

If it is desired to cut a narrow groove in the ice, the cutting assembly52 may have a modified form of cutting assembly generally referred to bythe reference numeral 134 and illustrated in FIGURES 5 and 6 of thedrawings secured thereto in depending fashion, The cutting assembly 134projects below and has an effective diameter considerably less than theeffective diameter of the cutting assembly 52 and includes carbidetipped cutting elements 136 removably secured to a mounting disk 138which may be secured to the disk 54.

If it is desired to cut straight grooves in the surface 110, suitablestraight guide means may be provided and the edger 10 may be moved alongthese guide means to cut the desired grooves which may subsequently befilled with colored water and frozen to form colored guide lines in theice. Further, if it is desired to out large diameter circular grooves inthe ice, the pivot pin 132 may be embedded and frozen in the ice at thecenter of the desired circle and a flexible tension member may beconnected between the pivot pin 132 and the edger 10. Further, moreaccurate cutting of circular grooves may be obtained by using a singlerigid radius arm such as arm 139, see FIGURE 4. The arm 139 may be ofany desired length and includes an endwise outwardly opening notch 140in one end and an aperture 141 adjacent notch 140. The end of the arm139 remote from notch 140 is adapted, by any suitable means, forconnection with the pivot pin 132 and the base 12 includes a dependinglocat ing pin 142 receivable through the aperture 141 and a headed bolt143 or other fastener receivable in the notch 140 which may be tightenedso as to coact with pin 142 to releasably secure the arm 139 in positionaligned with the axis of rotation of shaft 50 against angulardisplacement relative to the base 12. Also, any suitable guide meanssuch as planks may be laid upon the ice surface and engaged by thearcuate abutment plate 144 secured to the base 12 by a fastener 146 anddisposed outwardly of abutment plate 122, see FIGURES l and 2, forguiding the edger 10 when cutting straight grooves in the ice. Further,straight grooves of any width may be cut in the ice by making successiveoverlapping passes.

The depth of the grooves to be cut and the amount of ice which is to beremoved from the perimeter of an ice rink may be readily adjusted byrotating the screw shaft 90 so as to simultaneously angularly adjust thesupport arms or feet 66, 88 and 74.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed,

and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may beresorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. An ice edger including a base, an upstanding driven rotary shaftprojecting downwardly below said base, a rotary cutting assembly carriedby the lower end portion of said shaft and adapted to engage and cut, inresurfacing manner, the ice surface from which said base is supported,said base including dependingly supported ice surface engaging supportmeans spaced about and outwardly from said cutting assembly for limitingthe depth of cut made by said cutting assembly and supporting said basefrom said ice surface, said support means including a plurality of firstdepending support members spaced about said shaft and supported fromsaid base for adjustable vertical stationary positioning relative tosaid base and an additional support member spaced outwardly from saidcutting assembly and from said first support members and supported fromsaid base for free vertical shifting relative thereto, and means biasingsaid additional support member downwardly relative to said base, thedownward thrust effected by said biasing means on said additionalsupport member being generally equal to the portion of the weight ofsaid edges which would be supported from said additional support memberif it were stationarily mounted and the lower ends of all of saidsupport members were disposed in a single plane.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein said edger includes adjustmentmeans operatively connected to said first depending support members forsimultaneously vertically adjusting the latter.

3. The combination of claim 2, wherein said edger includes elongatedhandle means projecting endwise outwardly from said base and controlmeans on an outer end portion of said handle means operatively connectedto said adjusting means for adjustment thereof from said handle means.

4. The combination of claim 3, wherein said first support members equalthree in number and the four support members are spaced generallyequally circumferentially about said shaft.

5. An ice edger including a base, an upstanding driven rotary shaftprojecting downwardly below said base, a rotary cutting assembly carriedby the lower end portion of said shaft and adapted to engage and cut, inresurfacing manner, the ice surface from which said base is supported,said base including dependingly supported ice surface engaging supportmeans spaced about and outwardly from said cutting assembly for limitingthe depth of cut made by said cutting assembly and supporting said basefrom said ice surface, said support means including a plurality of firstdepending support members spaced about said shaft and supported fromsaid base for adjustable vertical stationary positioning relative tosaid base and an additional support member spaced outwardly from saidcutting assembly and from said first support member and supported fromsaid base for free vertical shifting relative thereto, said baseincluding at least one side extending longitudinally of said base andalong which two of said support members are spaced, said cuttingassembly including outer cutting portions thereof swingable through acircular path of which a straight line extending between two supportmembers comprises a chord whereby said outer cutting portions areadapted to cut closely adjacent the sides of an ice rink.

6. The combination of claim 5, wherein said base includes an abutmentmember supported therefrom for adjustable positioning along a pathextending transversely of said line, disposed generally centrallyintermediate said two support members and generally coinciding with aradius of the axis of rotation of said shaft.

7. The combination of claim 6, wherein said support means includes aplurality of first depending support members spaced about said shaft andsupported from said base for adjustable vertical stationary positioningrelative to said base and an additional support member spaced outwardlyfrom said cutting assembly and from said first support members andsupported from said base for free ,vertical shifting relative thereto,and means biasing said additional support member downwardly relative tosaid base, the downward thrust effected by said biasing means on saidadditional support member being generally equal to the portion of theweight of said edges which would be supported from said additionalsupport member if it were stationarily mounted and the lower ends of allof said support members were disposed in a single plane.

8. The combination of claim 7, wherein said edger includes adjustmentmeans operatively connected to said first depending support members forsimultaneously vertically adjusting the latter.

9. An ice edger including a base, a powered cutting assembly dependinglysupported from said base and adapted to engage and cut, in resurfacingmanner, the ice surface from which said base is supported, said baseincluding dependingly supported ice surface engaging support meansspaced about and outwardly from said cutting assembly for limiting thedepth of cut made by said cutting assembly and supporting said base fromsaid ice surface, a plurality of first depending support members spacedabout and outwardly of said cutting assembly and supported from saidbase for adjustable vertical stationary positioning relative to saidbase and an additional support member spaced outwardly from said cuttingassembly and from said first support members and supported from saidbase for free vertical shifting relative thereto, and means biasing saidadditional support member downwardly relative to said base, the downwardthrust effected by said biasing means on said additional support memberbeing generally equal to the portion of the weight of said edges whichwould be supported fi'om said additional support member if it werestationarily mounted and the lower ends of all of said support memberswere disposed in a single plane.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,452,493 4/1923 Conner 4.11,647,066 10/ 1927 Westman 144-119 3,180,380 4/1965 Franzen 145-121ROBERT C. RIORDON, Primary Examiner R. V. PARKER, JR., AssistantExaminer US. Cl. X.R. 51-177; l44117; 1454.1

